In 1930, my greatgrandparents purchased a beautiful farm in Bradford County, PA, in a little hamlet called French Azilum. In the summer, we spent time there, resting, breathing in the fresh air, enjoying the wild flowers, the bright stars and planets on a clear moonlit night, and swimming in the Susquehanna River. If gas drilling is allowed to continue, Bradford County and all of Pennsylvania will be forever changed, ruined beyond repair.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Gas Drilling Accident Goes Virtually Unreported in PA

A fracking blowout in a state forest in PA (Tioga County) occurred January 17th, 2011. Did you hear about it? I didn't. The location of the blowout was on PA State Forest lands in Ward Township about nine miles southeast of Mansfield.

According to an article in the Ithaca Journal (http://www.theithacajournal.com/), the accident caused an uncontrolled discharge of sand and fracking fluids onto state forest lands in Tioga County.

This was a serious incident that could have caused significant environmental harm had it not been brought under control....Talisman Energy began having problems controlling the well in the early afternoon of January 17th. A needle valve on a casing wing valve failed, which caused a loss of well control.

During the blowout, fracking fluids and sand discharged from the well into the air. There was no fire or explosion, and no one was injured.

There were three violations identified to date:
Potential pollution of fresh water streams near the well site

Releasing fracking fluids onto the ground

Failing to contain hydraulic fracturing fluids

Talisman said it had modified the design of the failed component. (Question: They haven't got it right yet??? Are they practicing on us? Of course, they are.) They said they strive to continuously improve well site operations. So reassuring.

In 2010, PA DEP conducted 187 inspections of Talisman well sites. Ninety-one of these inspections found 151 violations. In my opionion, that is way too many violations.

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Are we the problem?

I am pessimistic about the human race because it is too ingenious for its own good. Our approach to nature is to beat it into submission. We would stand a better chance of survival if we accommodated ourselves to this planet and viewed it appreciatively instead of skeptically and dictatorially.

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Food for Thought

"And by reason of their boundless pride. . .there shall be nothing remaining on the earth or under the earth or in the waters that shall not be pursued and molested or destroyed."

Leonardo da Vinci

"We are the most dangerous species of life on the planet, and every other species, even the earth itself, has cause to fear our power to exterminate. But we are also the only species which, when it chooses to do so, will go to great effort to save what it might destroy."

- Wallace Stegner, renowned western writer and conservationist

"In every decision we must consider the impact on the seventh generation."